


Green Path

by issen4



Category: Initial D, Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi | Spirited Away
Genre: Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2007-02-21
Updated: 2007-02-21
Packaged: 2018-02-22 01:33:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,122
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2489558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/issen4/pseuds/issen4
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One day, Takumi drives a girl to an abandoned amusement park.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I have to admit that I totally messed up the locations in Japan while writing this. dyoklako (livejournal) pointed out to me that Chihiro's family was moving to Tochinoki--in the movie, that's near Nagoya, and in RL Japan, that's near Tokyo. Takumi's usual stomping grounds, though, are in Gumna - rather a long, long distance away Perhaps we could pretend that Takumi also knows the roads of Nagoya well?...

\---------------------------

She was thin, with a round, expressive face, and serious eyes that seemed to see more than what others could. Her name was Ogino Chihiro. She had a small suitcase, in the backseat.

"Thank you for driving me, Fujiwara-san," she said in the car. "I asked around, and they said you were the best driver around."

"Uh... I just know the area well," he demurred with his customary frankness. "I know the place you mean," he added, looking away from the winding mountain road to glance at her for a split-second. She was staring out at the windscreen, her eyes alive with anticipation as she watched the forest fly past them.

"It's difficult to find, I've found."

He acknowledged that with a murmur, and he remembered the occasions when he had almost run over confused, terrified strangers who had wandered through the forest. When he stopped the car to help them, they muttered about apparitions and gods, and enchantments that altered reality.

"I've tried many times, but I always got lost instead."

He had gone looking once, driving down the mountain roads he knew so well, and found himself venturing down a dirt path. Beneath the green shadows of old trees, he had found faded red walls that housed an abandoned tunnel. It was as though voices were coming through it. He had entered the tunnel, searching for the source, but as he walked, it was as though the roads outside were calling him. Heeding his instinct, he had retreated, back to his car.

To his surprise, he was unable to find it again. Curious, he had gone searching, even exploring on foot in the forest, but he always drew a blank.

_There._ He slammed on the brakes, almost as though he could physically feel the opening in the trees, like a green doorway set in a wall of green leaves. His feet moved of their own accord, in perfect coordination with the twist of his steering wheel.

Beside him, the girl gasped. "What are you-" She felt abruptly silent.

They were on the dirt path. He did a quick visual check, and was reassured that everything was fine. Dirt roads tended to be rough on cars like his.

"It's this one," the girl said in wonderment.

Eventually, he had discovered that if he watched out of the corner of his eye at just the right moment, he could see the gap by the forest, and if he drove fast enough, he could just manage to land on the dirt path that would lead him to those high red walls.

"How did you do that?" she asked him. 

He struggled to explain himself. "If you watch the road carefully, you'll always be able to see a path," he said. "I do that when I race other cars, too." He wasn't sure what made him try to explain something that was so personal to him. He used to assume that all he needed to do was to drive as fast as he could, but Project D made him realize that he needed to do more. "You just need to see where you're going."

The girl said, "I do."

It was only a few minutes, though it felt like longer, until he finally reached his destination, and stopped the car a short distance away. "Here it is," he said, but she had already sprang out of the car, staring up at the walls.

A few of the townsfolk knew about this, though he was willing to bet that they had never been out here. All that people knew was that years ago, a huge corporation had started on an amusement park in the forest, to take advantage of the mountain scenery, but had to abandon it when funding died down. Months later, stories about people wandering for days in the park site had started.

"It's as I remembered," the girl whispered.

He opened the door of the back seat and took out her suitcase, walking towards her. "Are you sure this is where you want to go?" he asked.

"Hm?" She was nearly humming under her breath. "Oh!" she spotted her suitcase and took it from him with a murmur of thanks. "I will be fine. Thank you very much for bringing me here. You don't need to wait for me to come back. I know the way from here."

He watched as she entered the tunnel, disappearing into its shadows. After a few minutes, he seemed to hear the echo of voices. He stood beside the car, listening.

Then he got into his car and drove back onto the mountain roads.

\---end----


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was a one-way journey for her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This, being a prequel, should more properly be the first chapter. But I thought it would be more effective if it were more like a flashback.

\-------------

The moment he saw his passenger, he had understood the destination.

His life belonged to the mountain roads, to the modern-day sport of car racing and the thrill of the chase. Nothing otherworldly about these things, though he had thought a time or two that there was something spiritual about being at peace with his 86 on the mountain, early in the morning, as well. 

But nothing like this girl. 

He barely comprehended that she was only slightly younger than he, for there was an air about her that seemed immensely dignified, almost old-fashioned, so that she gave the impression of someone far more mature than her physical age. More importantly, he could sense the otherworldliness in her manner, and it made him shiver inwardly. 

No wonder she wanted to go to _that_ place. 

"Takumi! Here's the person I was telling you about," Suzuki-san said cheerfully to Takumi as he ushered him forward. "This is Ogino-san." 

Takumi noticed that for all his friend's easy-going manner, he remained standing a good five feet from the girl. "Pleased to meet you," he said gravely. 

"Thank you for agreeing to help me," she said. Her voice was low and made him think of the lake he had just passed by. 

"Ogino-san is a writer, travelling through Japan, and writing about funny places in each prefecture. She would like to visit that old place, and I said to her, our Takumi can drive anywhere." 

Takumi bowed, belatedly reminded of his manners. He wasn't sure how deeply he should bow, though. He knew that royalty warranted a ninety-degree bow, but how much more formal should he be, for her? "My car is over there," he said, straightening awkwardly. 

"Ah, I'll help you put your things in the backseat!" Suzuki-san said, suiting his actions to his words. 

"Please, this way," Takumi invited. 

The girl nodded, and smiled, friendly. She got into the passenger seat of the car. 

"See you soon, Ogino-san, when you get back from your visit!" Suzuki-san waved as they drove off. 

Takumi said nothing. He knew she was not returning from her visit. 

\-----end----


End file.
